Applies to

Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2, Surface Pro 3, Surface 3.

Applies to

Surface Pro, Surface Pro 2, Surface Pro 3, Surface 3.

Applies to

Surface RT, Surface 2.

Operating system:

All about accounts

The account you use to sign in on your Surface stores your settings, preferences, and more. For the best experience, use a Microsoft account to sign in. That gives you seamless access to your Windows Store apps and social media, and backs up your files and photos in the cloud.

If you share your Surface with other people, it's a good idea to create an account for each person. That way, each person gets his or her own preferences and settings and can access his or her own files and apps. Having your own account means your files are hidden from others unless you choose to share them.

If you have kids, you can set up a child's account with extra security measures, so your kids can see only what you want them to see while using your Surface.

If you’re using mobile broadband to connect to the Internet and have billing, data plan, or other questions related to your mobile broadband account, contact your mobile operator.

First account on your new Surface

When you set up your Surface, an account is created for you based on information you supply. The first account is set up as an administrator account. From this account, you can create, modify, or remove other accounts on your Surface.

Microsoft account or local account?

When you set up your Surface, or while you’re setting up an account for someone else, you choose whether you want the account to be a Microsoft account or a local account. Your best bet is to use a Microsoft account.

Work and play more easily with a Microsoft account

A Microsoft account is an email address and password that you use to sign in to Windows. If you’ve used Microsoft services in the past—like Xbox, Hotmail, Outlook.com, OneDrive, Messenger, Skype, or Windows Phone—you already have a Microsoft account. It's the email address and password you use to sign in to these services. When you sign in to your Surface with a Microsoft account and have an Internet connection:

You can keep your color scheme, browser favorites, apps, and other personal settings in sync with any other PC you have that runs Windows 10 or Windows 8.1.

You can get to the documents, photos, and other files you create from any PC, because they’re saved to OneDrive by default. In Windows 10, OneDrive is like a local folder that follows you wherever you sign in with your Microsoft account.

You can shop for apps in the Windows Store. The Store uses your account to keep track of the apps you buy, so you can download, update, and reinstall them whenever you need to. For more info, see Explore the Store.

Local accounts and domain accounts

A local account is an account created just on your Surface. If you’re using a local account, you’ll need to sign in to services like OneDrive, Skype, Windows Store, or social media each time you want to access them.

To get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the local account, you can connect a Microsoft account to your local account.

If you work for an organization that has assigned you a user name in a network domain, you can use that account to sign in to your Surface Pro model. Check with your organization’s IT department on how to set this up.

You can connect a Microsoft account to the domain account, to get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the domain account.

See which kind of account you’re using

Step 1:

Go to Start , and select Settings.

Step 2:

Select Accounts.

Your account info appears under your name:

If you see an email address, you’re using a Microsoft account.

If you see Local account, your account is just on your Surface, not connected to the cloud. To switch to a Microsoft account, select Connect your Microsoft account.

If you see a network domain (domain name\user name), you’re using a domain account, such as an account for your workplace. To connect your Microsoft account to your domain account, select Connect your Microsoft account.

Change your password, picture, and other account settings

You can change your password, add or change the picture for your account, and connect to or disconnect from a Microsoft account. Here’s how:

Step 1:

Go to Start , and select Settings.

Step 2:

Select Accounts, and change the settings you want:

Select Your account to add or create an account picture, connect or disconnect from a Microsoft account, and access other account settings online.

Select Sign in options to change your password, create a picture password or PIN, and choose how long Windows waits before requiring you to sign in when you’ve been away. To make these changes, you’ll need your account password. If you don’t have a password, you can create one here.

Select Work access to get access to shared work or school resources.

Select Family & other users to add or edit other user accounts on your Surface (administrator account only).

Account types: standard and administrator

Each account is assigned an account type that determines what you can do using that account. You can assign these account types to any Microsoft account or local account:

Administrator. When you sign in with an administrator account, you can create or remove other accounts, set their account types, and install apps.

The first account on your Surface is always an administrator account. To create a new administrator account, you need to first create the account, and then edit it to make it an administrator account.

Standard. People using a Standard account can create and edit files and personalize their settings, but they can’t create, change, or remove other accounts. They may not be able to install some apps. When you create a new account, it’s a standard account.

See which account type you are using

Step 1:

Go to Start , and select Settings.

Step 2:

Select Accounts.
If you see Family & other users in the left pane, you have an administrator account. Otherwise, you have a standard account.

How do I add an account to my Surface?

You can add accounts for family members or other users.

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

Go to Start , and select Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.

Step 3:

Do one of the following:

To add a child or other family member, select Add a family member.

To add someone who is not a member of your family, select Add someone else to this PC.

Step 4:

Follow the on-screen instructions to set up the account.

You can change account levels after you set up an account. To learn how, see Change another user’s account type, below.

How to create a child account

Child accounts are controlled by the Family Safety settings you apply to the account.

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

Go to Start , and select Settings. > Accounts > Family & other users.

Step 3:

Select Add a family member > Add a child.

Step 4:

Do one of the following:

If you want to use the child's existing Microsoft account email address, enter the address, and select Next.

If the child doesn’t have an email address, select The person I want to invite doesn’t have an email address, enter the requested info, and select Next.

Step 5:

Follow the on-screen instructions to set up the account.

Once you have the new account created on your Surface, you can edit the account settings to set app, game, and website restrictions. Here’s how:

Change another user’s account type

With an administrator account, you can change the account type of someone else who uses your Surface. You can make another person's account an administrator account or a standard user. Here's how:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

Go to Start , and select Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.

Step 3:

Select the account you want to change, and select Change account type.

Step 4:

Choose the Account type from the drop-down list.

Remove an account

If you delete an account, all the settings, files, and data will be lost unless you back them up or save them to another location.

Notes

You can’t remove the account you’re currently using.

You can remove an account only if you’re signed in with an administrator account. This means that if you want to remove an administrator account, there must be at least one other administrator account that you can use to do so.

To remove an account:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

Go to Start , and select Settings > Accounts > Family & other users.

Step 3:

Select the account you want to remove, and select Remove.

Step 4:

Select Delete account and data.

The account you use to sign in on your Surface stores your settings, preferences, and more. For the best experience, use a Microsoft account to sign in. That gives you seamless access to your Windows Store apps and social media, and backs up your files and photos in the cloud.

If you share your Surface with other people, it's a good idea to create an account for each person. That way, each person gets their own preferences and settings and can access their own files and apps. Having your own account means your files are hidden from others unless you choose to share them.

If you have kids, you can set up a child's account with extra security measures, so your kids see only what you want them to see while using Surface.

If you’re using mobile broadband to connect to the Internet and have billing, data plan, or other questions related to your mobile broadband account, contact your mobile operator.

First account on your new Surface

When you set up your Surface, an account is created for you based on information you supply. From this account, you can create, modify, or remove other accounts on your Surface.

Microsoft account or local account?

When you set up your Surface, or while you’re setting up an account for someone else, you choose whether you want the account to be a Microsoft account or a local account. Your best bet is to use a Microsoft account.

Work and play more easily with a Microsoft account

A Microsoft account is an email address and password that you use to sign into Windows. If you’ve used Microsoft services in the past—like Xbox, Hotmail, Outlook.com, OneDrive, Messenger, Skype, or Windows Phone—you already have a Microsoft account. It's the email address and password you use to sign in to these services. When you sign into your Surface with a Microsoft account and have an Internet connection:

You can keep your color scheme, browser favorites, apps, and other personal settings in sync with any other PC you have running Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1 using your Microsoft account.

You can get to the documents, photos, and other files you create from any PC, because they’re saved to OneDrive by default. In Windows 8.1, OneDrive is like a local folder that follows you wherever you sign in with your Microsoft account.

You can shop for apps in the Windows Store. The Store uses your account to keep track of the apps you’ve bought, so you can download, update, and reinstall them whenever you need to. Want to add or change a payment option from your Microsoft account? See Edit payment method for the Windows Store and view billing history for more info.

Local accounts and domain accounts

A local account is an account created just on your Surface. If you’re using a local account, you’ll need to sign on to services like OneDrive, Skype, Windows Store, or social media each time you want to access them. If you forget the password for your local account, we can’t help you access your files.

To get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the local account, you can connect a Microsoft account to your local account.

If you work for an organization that has assigned you a username in a network domain, you can use that account to sign in to your Surface Pro model. Check with your organization’s IT department on how to set this up.

To join Surface 3 to a network domain, you need to upgrade from Windows 8.1 to Windows 8.1 Pro. For info on how to buy Windows 8.1 Pro Pack which includes all the features of Windows 8.1 Pro, including the ability to join a domain, see Get more from Windows 8.1.

Note

You can't join or sign into a network domain using Surface RT or Surface 2.

You can connect a Microsoft account to the domain account, to get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the domain account.

See which kind of account you’re using

Step 1:

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Info about your account appears under your name:

If you see an email address, then you’re using a Microsoft account.

If you see Local account, your account is just on your Surface (not connected to the cloud). To switch to a Microsoft account, tap or click Connect your Microsoft account.

If a you see a network domain (domain name\username), then you’re using a domain account, such as an account for your workplace. To connect your Microsoft account to your domain account, tap or click Connect your Microsoft account. See Connect your Microsoft account to your domain account to learn how.

Change your password, picture, and other account settings

You can change your password, add or change the picture for your account, and connect to or disconnect from a Microsoft account. Here’s how:

Step 1:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Step 4:

Next you can change settings on your account:

Tap or click Your account.
You can you can add or create an account picture, connect or disconnect from a Microsoft account, and access other account settings online.

Tap or click Sign in options.
You can change your password, create a picture password or PIN, and choose whether a password is required when waking Surface from sleep. To make these changes, you’ll need your account password. If you don’t have a password, you can create one here.

Account types: standard, administrator, and child

Each account is assigned an account type that determines what you can do using that account. You can assign these account types to any Microsoft or local account:

Administrator. When you sign in with an administrator account, you can create or remove other accounts, and you can set their account types. With an administrator account, you can install apps.

The first account on your Surface is always an administrator account. To create a new administrator account, you need to first create the new account, and then edit it to make it an administrator account.

Standard. People using a Standard account can create and edit files and personalize their settings, but they can’t create, change, or remove any other accounts. They may not be able to install some apps. When you create a new account, it’s a standard account unless you set it up as a Child account.

Child. Child accounts are controlled by the Family Safety settings you apply to the account. See Keep your kids safer on the PC to learn how to turn on Family Safety features that are built into Windows.

See which account type you are using

Step 1:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Step 4:

If you see Other accounts in the left pane, you have an administrator account.

Otherwise, you have a standard or child account.

If you have a child account, the message “This account is monitored by Family Safety” appears briefly next to your name on the Start screen when you first sign in. To see what restrictions you have on the child account:

Step 1:

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC Settings, and tap or click Control Panel.

Step 3:

Tap or click User Accounts and Family Safety, and under Family Safety tap or click View Family settings for your account.

If Family Safety is turned on, you have a child account. On this page you can also see what restrictions you have, and whether your activity on the PC is being collected.

How do I add an account to my Surface?

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click Add an account,

Step 6:

Next, do one of the following:

If the new account will sign in using an existing Microsoft account email address, enter it, and tap or click Next.

If the new account will sign in using a new Microsoft account email address, tap or click Sign up for a new email address, enter the requested info, and then tap or click Next.

If the new account will sign in without a Microsoft account, tap or click Sign in without a Microsoft account (not recommended), and tap or click Local account. You can connect the local account to a Microsoft account later.

If the new account will be a child’s account, tap or click Add a child’s account.

How to create a child account

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click Add an account, and tap or click Add a child’s account.

Step 6:

Next, do one of the following:

If you want to use the child's existing Microsoft account email address, enter the child's email address, and click Next.

If you want to create a new email address for the child, tap or click Sign up for a new email address, enter the requested info, and tap or click Next.

If you don't want the child to use an email address, tap or click Add a child’s account without email, enter the requested info, and tap or click Next.

Step 7:

Follow the prompts to set up the account.

If you want to limit your child's computer time or limit the apps, websites, and games your child can access, you can. See Keep your kids safer on the PC to learn how to turn on Family Safety features that are built into Windows.

Change another user’s account type

With an administrator account, you can change the account type of someone else who uses your Surface. You can make another person's account an administrator account, standard user, or child account. Here's how:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click the account you want to change, and tap or click Edit.

Step 6:

Choose the Account type from the dropdown list.

Remove an account

If you delete an account, all the settings, files, and data will be lost unless you back them up or save them to another location.

Notes

You can’t remove the account you’re currently using.

You can only remove an account if you’re signed in with an administrator account. This means that if you want to remove an administrator account, there must be at least one other administrator account that you can use to do so.

To remove an account:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click the account you want to change, and tap or click Remove.

Step 6:

Tap or click Delete account and data.

The account you use to sign in on your Surface stores your settings, preferences, and more. For the best experience, use a Microsoft account to sign in. That gives you seamless access to your Windows Store apps and social media, and backs up your files and photos in the cloud.

If you share your Surface with other people, it's a good idea to create an account for each person. That way, each person gets their own preferences and settings and can access their own files and apps. Having your own account means your files are hidden from others unless you choose to share them.

If you have kids, you can set up a child's account with extra security measures, so your kids see only what you want them to see while using Surface.

If you’re using mobile broadband to connect to the Internet and have billing, data plan, or other questions related to your mobile broadband account, contact your mobile operator.

First account on your new Surface

When you set up your Surface, an account is created for you based on information you supply. From this account, you can create, modify, or remove other accounts on your Surface.

Microsoft account or local account?

When you set up your Surface, or while you’re setting up an account for someone else, you choose whether you want the account to be a Microsoft account or a local account. Your best bet is to use a Microsoft account.

Work and play more easily with a Microsoft account

A Microsoft account is an email address and password that you use to sign into Windows. If you’ve used Microsoft services in the past—like Xbox, Hotmail, Outlook.com, OneDrive, Messenger, Skype, or Windows Phone—you already have a Microsoft account. It's the email address and password you use to sign in to these services. When you sign into your Surface with a Microsoft account and have an Internet connection:

You can keep your color scheme, browser favorites, apps, and other personal settings in sync with any other PC you have running Windows 8.1 or Windows RT 8.1 using your Microsoft account.

You can get to the documents, photos, and other files you create from any PC, because they’re saved to OneDrive by default. In Windows 8.1, OneDrive is like a local folder that follows you wherever you sign in with your Microsoft account.

You can shop for apps in the Windows Store. The Store uses your account to keep track of the apps you’ve bought, so you can download, update, and reinstall them whenever you need to. Want to add or change a payment option from your Microsoft account? See Edit payment method for the Windows Store and view billing history for more info.

Local accounts and domain accounts

A local account is an account created just on your Surface. If you’re using a local account, you’ll need to sign on to services like OneDrive, Skype, Windows Store, or social media each time you want to access them. If you forget the password for your local account, we can’t help you access your files.

To get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the local account, you can connect a Microsoft account to your local account.

If you work for an organization that has assigned you a username in a network domain, you can use that account to sign in to your Surface Pro model. Check with your organization’s IT department on how to set this up.

To join Surface 3 to a network domain, you need to upgrade from Windows 8.1 to Windows 8.1 Pro. For info on how to buy Windows 8.1 Pro Pack which includes all the features of Windows 8.1 Pro, including the ability to join a domain, see Get more from Windows 8.1.

Note

You can't join or sign into a network domain using Surface RT or Surface 2.

You can connect a Microsoft account to the domain account, to get benefits of using a Microsoft account even when you sign in with the domain account.

See which kind of account you’re using

Step 1:

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Info about your account appears under your name:

If you see an email address, then you’re using a Microsoft account.

If you see Local account, your account is just on your Surface (not connected to the cloud). To switch to a Microsoft account, tap or click Connect your Microsoft account.

If a you see a network domain (domain name\username), then you’re using a domain account, such as an account for your workplace. To connect your Microsoft account to your domain account, tap or click Connect your Microsoft account. See Connect your Microsoft account to your domain account to learn how.

Change your password, picture, and other account settings

You can change your password, add or change the picture for your account, and connect to or disconnect from a Microsoft account. Here’s how:

Step 1:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Step 4:

Next you can change settings on your account:

Tap or click Your account.
You can you can add or create an account picture, connect or disconnect from a Microsoft account, and access other account settings online.

Tap or click Sign in options.
You can change your password, create a picture password or PIN, and choose whether a password is required when waking Surface from sleep. To make these changes, you’ll need your account password. If you don’t have a password, you can create one here.

Account types: standard, administrator, and child

Each account is assigned an account type that determines what you can do using that account. You can assign these account types to any Microsoft or local account:

Administrator. When you sign in with an administrator account, you can create or remove other accounts, and you can set their account types. With an administrator account, you can install apps.

The first account on your Surface is always an administrator account. To create a new administrator account, you need to first create the new account, and then edit it to make it an administrator account.

Standard. People using a Standard account can create and edit files and personalize their settings, but they can’t create, change, or remove any other accounts. They may not be able to install some apps. When you create a new account, it’s a standard account unless you set it up as a Child account.

Child. Child accounts are controlled by the Family Safety settings you apply to the account. See Keep your kids safer on the PC to learn how to turn on Family Safety features that are built into Windows.

See which account type you are using

Step 1:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 3:

Tap or click Accounts.

Step 4:

If you see Other accounts in the left pane, you have an administrator account.

Otherwise, you have a standard or child account.

If you have a child account, the message “This account is monitored by Family Safety” appears briefly next to your name on the Start screen when you first sign in. To see what restrictions you have on the child account:

Step 1:

Swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, and click Settings.)

Step 2:

Tap or click Change PC Settings, and tap or click Control Panel.

Step 3:

Tap or click User Accounts and Family Safety, and under Family Safety tap or click View Family settings for your account.

If Family Safety is turned on, you have a child account. On this page you can also see what restrictions you have, and whether your activity on the PC is being collected.

How do I add an account to my Surface?

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click Add an account,

Step 6:

Next, do one of the following:

If the new account will sign in using an existing Microsoft account email address, enter it, and tap or click Next.

If the new account will sign in using a new Microsoft account email address, tap or click Sign up for a new email address, enter the requested info, and then tap or click Next.

If the new account will sign in without a Microsoft account, tap or click Sign in without a Microsoft account (not recommended), and tap or click Local account. You can connect the local account to a Microsoft account later.

If the new account will be a child’s account, tap or click Add a child’s account.

How to create a child account

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click Add an account, and tap or click Add a child’s account.

Step 6:

Next, do one of the following:

If you want to use the child's existing Microsoft account email address, enter the child's email address, and click Next.

If you want to create a new email address for the child, tap or click Sign up for a new email address, enter the requested info, and tap or click Next.

If you don't want the child to use an email address, tap or click Add a child’s account without email, enter the requested info, and tap or click Next.

Step 7:

Follow the prompts to set up the account.

If you want to limit your child's computer time or limit the apps, websites, and games your child can access, you can. See Keep your kids safer on the PC to learn how to turn on Family Safety features that are built into Windows.

Change another user’s account type

With an administrator account, you can change the account type of someone else who uses your Surface. You can make another person's account an administrator account, standard user, or child account. Here's how:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)

Step 3:

Tap or click Change PC settings.

Step 4:

Tap or click Accounts, and tap or click Other accounts.

Step 5:

Tap or click the account you want to change, and tap or click Edit.

Step 6:

Choose the Account type from the dropdown list.

Remove an account

If you delete an account, all the settings, files, and data will be lost unless you back them up or save them to another location.

Notes

You can’t remove the account you’re currently using.

You can only remove an account if you’re signed in with an administrator account. This means that if you want to remove an administrator account, there must be at least one other administrator account that you can use to do so.

To remove an account:

Step 1:

Sign in with an administrator account.

Step 2:

From the Start screen, swipe in from the right edge of the screen, and tap Settings.
(If you're using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Settings.)